Diego Chara

Before signing as the Timbers’ first Designated Player on April 13, 2011, Chara was a dependable playmaker for eight seasons in Colombia’s top flight, the Liga Postobón. With Deportes Tolima, he helped orchestrate one of the most prolific offenses in the league in 2010, as the club tallied a league-best 88 goals.

2014: Tallied two goals and a career-high five assists in 31 appearances (31 starts) during the 2014 season ... Became the first Timbers MLS player to surpass 10,000 minutes played on Sept. 27 ... Was ejected in the 99th minute of a 3-1 loss at Seattle in the U.S. Open Cup on July 9 ... Made his 100th MLS appearance, playing 90 minutes in a 3-1 road win over Real Salt Lake June 7 ... Underwent successful surgery to stabalize fractured third metacarpal sustained May 11 against LA Galaxy ... Became the club's MLS career leader in minutes played on April 12 against Chivas USA ... Scored two goals, his first-career MLS brace, on his 28th birthday in a 4-4 draw against Sounders FC on April 5 at Providence Park ... His first goal in the ninth minute was his first since Sept. 16, 2011, and his second goal in the 55th minute was nominated for MLS Goal of the Week for Week 5 ... Selected to the MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week for Week 5 ... Made the 90th start of his MLS career March 29 at FC Dallas ... Played in his 90th match for the club March 22 at Colorado, becoming just the third Timbers MLS player to reach the milestone.

2013: Started all four of the club's matches in the 2013 MLS Cup Playoffs, playing all 360 minutes and recording one assist ... Assisted on the go-ahead goal by Ryan Johnson in the 15th minute of a 2-1 road win against Seattle Sounders FC in Leg 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals on Nov. 2 ... Started all 31 of his appearances during the regular season, playing the full 90 in all but two of those matches ... Played the full 90 in 18 straight matches March 9-July 13 ... Ranked among team leaders with two game-winning assists during the regular season ... Was one of six Portland players on the fan ballot for the 2013 AT&T MLS All-Star Game ... With his performance in a 1-0 win over Seattle Sounders FC on Oct. 13 at JELD-WEN Field, was nominated for FutbolMLS.com's Latino de la Jornada and was named honorable mention on the MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week for Week 33 ... Was also an honorable mention on the MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week for Week 30 for his performance in a 1-0 win over the Colorado Rapids on Sept. 20 at JELD-WEN Field ... Made his 80th MLS start for the club Sept. 14 at Chivas USA, becoming one of just three Timbers MLS players to start 80 league matches for the club ... Selected to the MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week for Week 16 following his performance in the club's 1-0 win over FC Dallas on June 15 ... Received honorable mention on the MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week for Week 12 for his performance in a 2-2 road draw May 18 at Vancouver Whitecaps FC … Recorded the game-winning assist on April 27 in a 3-2 win against Sporting Kansas City, slipping a through ball to Rodney Wallace at the top of the box for the go-ahead goal ... Registered his second assist of the season on the first of two Ryan Johnson goals (55th minute) in a 2-0 win over Houston on April 6 at JELD-WEN Field ... Was named FutbolMLS.com's Latino de la Jornada (Latino Player of the Week) for Week 6 ... Became just the third Timbers MLS player to appear in 60 matches with the club on March 30 at Colorado ... Assisted on Ryan Johnson’s 80th-minute goal against Montreal on March 9, recording his fifth-career MLS assist ... Against Montreal, became the second player in the club's MLS history to pass the 5,000 minutes played milestone.

2012: Started all 28 of his regular-season apearances and logged an MLS-career high 2,473 minutes in his second season in Portland ... At season’s end, was named the Players’ Player of the Year and the Supporters’ Player of the Year ... Chosen as one of 32 finalists for FutbolMLS.com’s 2012 Latino del Ano ... Played the full 90 in all but three of his appearances during the season ... Ranked second among league leaders with 72 fouls committed, setting the Timbers’ MLS club mark for fouls in a single season ... Wore the captain’s armband during a 2-1 victory over Chicago May 20 ... Owns the Timbers’ MLS record for consecutive starts by a field player, starting 27 straight matches from Aug. 14, 2011 to June 30, 2012 ... Earned honorable mention on the MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week for his efforts in a 1-1 draw against FC Dallas on Aug. 5 ... Played in his 50th match for the club on Aug. 19 at New York, becoming just the fourth player in the Timbers’ MLS history to reach the milestone ... Missed three matches after sustaining an adductor strain Sept. 15 against Seattle Sounders FC.

2011: Became the first Designated Player in Timbers MLS history, signing April 13 ... Made his club debut April 23 at LA Galaxy, coming on as a second-half sub ... Started his next 27 appearances ... Recorded his first MLS goal in a 2-1 win over Cascadia-rival Vancouver Whitecaps FC, scoring the quickest goal in Timbers MLS history in just the second minute of play ... Finished fourth on the team in points (8) and fifth in minutes logged (2,401) ... Recorded the game-winning assist in the first MLS match at BC Place, setting up Kenny Cooper’s goal to beat Whitecaps FC 1-0 on Oct. 2 ... Prior to joining the Timbers, scored two goals in nine games for Colombia first-division club De­portes Tolima during the 2011 Apertura season ... Played in seven matches in 2011 Copa Libertadores play, recording an assist in a 2-0 win over Brazilian power Corinthians.

2010: Transferred to Deportes Tolima ... Helped orchestrate one of the most prolific offenses in the Liga Postobón (Colombia’s first division) that season, as Tolima scored a league-best 88 goals ... Played in a team-high 42 matches for Tolima, aiding in a first-place overall finish for the club with a combined 25-10-11 record, which subsequently qualified the club for the 2011 Copa Libertadores ... Started six games in the 2010 Copa Sudamericana, as Tolima reached the quarterfinal before falling on penalty kicks to Argentina’s Independiente.

CAREER: Started his professional career at the age of 17 with Deportes Quindío in 2004 and appeared in 206 league matches over eight seasons in Colombia’s first division, playing for Quindío (2004-08), América de Cali (2009) and Tolima (2010-11) ... Played in at least 30 matches in five of his seven seasons in the Liga Postobón ... Paced América de Cali in both games and minutes played during a stand­out season in 2009, while guiding an offense that scored 44 total goals in 36 games ... Appeared in 30 games during his final season with Quindío in 2008, in which he aided in a postseason appearance for the club ... Has competed in two of South America’s top tournaments in the Copa Libertadores – in 2009 with América de Cali and 2011 with Tolima – and the Copa Sudamericana.

INTERNATIONAL: Was recalled by the Colombian National Team for a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Bolivia on Oct. 11, 2011, and played the final 21 minutes as a sub in a 2-1 win ... Made his senior international debut for the Colombian National Team on Nov. 17, 2010, starting a friendly against Peru in Bogota, Colombia.